HONG KONG–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a” (Excellent) of Evergreen Insurance Company Limited (EICL) (Bermuda). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.
The ratings reflect EICL’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
EICL’s risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), remained at the strongest level, which is underpinned by the low net underwriting leverage, a highly conservative and liquid investment portfolio and comprehensive reinsurance arrangements. Although the company’s capital and surplus has shown a mild downtrend over the past three years due to the dividend payouts to its parent, its BCAR remained at a robust level. AM Best expects the company to maintain a sufficient buffer in its risk-adjusted capitalisation to support its risk profile over the next three years.
EICL has demonstrated a track record of strong underwriting and operating performance, thanks to its group-related business. In view of its high severity low frequency risk profile that involves mainly marine and aviation business, the company ceded over half of its premiums to a panel of financially sound reinsurers and maintained a low retention ratio. As a result, the company’s net claims experience has been highly favourable and stable over the past few years, despite gross loss ratios for marine and aviation insurance increased in 2019 and 2020 due to some large claims. The grounding of the container ship, Ever Given, in the Suez Canal in March 2021 has not had material impact on EICL’s operating performance or capital. Investment income has been stable yet low due to its cash and deposit-only investment portfolio. Going forward, AM Best expects that underwriting results, in particular marine business, will continue to be the main driver of its bottom line.
As a pure captive of Evergreen Group, EICL’s underwriting book primarily consists of marine, aviation and property risks related to the group’s operations. EICL continues to be an integral part of the group, its risk management is well-embedded into the group’s risk framework and is viewed as appropriate to support its risk profile.
Negative rating actions could occur if there are material capital or dividend payouts that lead to a substantial decline in EICL’s risk-adjusted capitalisation, or if there is a significant deterioration in the company’s operating performance that no longer supports the strong assessment. In addition, negative rating actions could occur if there is significant deterioration in the credit profile of its ultimate parent, Evergreen International S.A.
AM Best remains the leading rating agency of alternative risk transfer entities, with more than 200 such vehicles rated throughout the world. For current Best’s Credit Ratings and independent data on the captive and alternative risk transfer insurance market, please visit www.ambest.com/captive.
Ratings are communicated to rated entities prior to publication. Unless stated otherwise, the ratings were not amended subsequent to that communication.
This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specialising in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.
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